Fix You
by Ialwaysshipthedoomedones
Summary: "Because realising you are not alone, can be all you need to save you from yourself" Carla and Michelle. Warnings for mental health issues
1. Chapter 1

_We are stronger here **together**, than we could ever be **alone,**  
>So <strong>hold<strong> on to me, don't you ever let me **go**_.

Carla sat curled on her sofa, her feet tucked underneath her and a large mug of vodka in her hands.

She hadn't been here in months and yet it felt right that she should be here today. The ghosts of a thousand memories linger in the air. She doesn't feel him around any more, not like she used to. Little pieces of what used to be still float around the flat, cups that past lovers once drank from, picture frames that had been wedding presents. In the kitchen draw that still held her cutlery lay a small, blue lighter that hadn't been used in years, but she still remembers the last cigarette it ever lit. It was a shared one, and from that moment on her whole life had twisted and turned and lead her to this moment.

Pieces of clothing that don't belong to her still hang in her wardrobe, jumpers and sweatshirts, a few suit jackets and shirts with matching ties. Every time she looks in there, which is admittedly not often now, she is hit with a scent so familiar it could only ever be Liam.

If she reaches down to the bottom of the cupboard she would find a shabby box, covered with dust, inside a thousand things that remind her of her first husband. Before they moved here, before Underworld and before the days when her love for Liam became so strong, that her love for Paul became resentment. Concert tickets, jewellery boxes, little things that reminded her of how good things had been.

She swigs the remainder of her drink, and bangs it down onto the table in anger. The anger she still feels years later, why her, why them?

Carla doesn't look up as the door of the place she once called home creaks open. She knows only one person has the key to her flat now and if she's honest with herself, it's the only person she would want to see today.

The only person who feels in anyway like she does, the one person she doesn't have to be strong for because they can both break down together.

"Car?" The younger woman moves straight towards the sofa and sits down. Carla instantly notices the mascara smudges and red, puffy eyes. Michelle's hazel pools mirroring Carla's broken gaze.

"How did you know I'd be here?" Carla asks, he voice soft, scared of upsetting her friend as she knows if Michelle cries, she will too and then neither will be able to stop.

"Where else would you be today?"

She realises now that the woman in front of her knows her probably better than she knows herself. After years of heartbreak and loss, they'd been through everything together. The ups and downs, the bitterly painful funerals, the fights and the murders.

She'd been the only one Carla had truly ever opened up to, Peter still couldn't read her like Michelle could, even after two years of living together.

"I still can't believe he's gone 'Chelle"

They fell into each other's embrace now, tears streaming down both their pained faces. They didn't speak, they didn't need to. Michelle's hand ran through Carla's hair and her own hand rubbed circles on her younger friend's back. Both instantly knowing what the other needed as comfort, already having had years of practise.

Each time another disaster had struck, they'd stood side by side, hands clamped tightly together, showing the world exactly what the Connor sisters are made of.

Michelle could feel Carla shaking as her violent sobs shook through her body, both their tops are wet with salty tears but neither of them care.

"Does Peter know you're here? Michelle asks finally, already knowing the answer. Carla never was one for heart to hearts, but even the mention of Paul or Liam usually sent her into self destruct mode. Especially the youngest of the two.

Carla shakes her head, remembering how she had stormed out of their house only hours ago, biting her partner's head off and then leaving without even an explanation. "He doesn't know about today, how could he?"

"He knows Carla, of course he does. You know, I think you underestimate him sometimes" Carla doesn't answer, instead she uses her sleeve to wipe the smudges around Michelle's eyes, rubbing her finger along her cheek before bringing her hands back down to her lap with a small smile.

"D'you remember Lee's 20th 'Chelle? He got so bladdered he couldn't walk, Paul 'ad to drag him to the car"

"Yeah, his trousers got caught in the car door, mum's face when she saw him in his undies was a picture"

They were both laughing now, remembering little things about their past that made it worth all the agony it had ended in.

Carla didn't have to thank her closest friend for the last few hours they had spent together, consoling and comforting each other. A simple look would tell her everything she needed. Carla held out her hand which Michelle accepted, and they sat together for a while longer, stronger and closer than ever.


	2. Chapter 2

_I'm **alright**, 'cause I have **you** here with me  
>And I can<strong> almost<strong> see, through the dark there is** light**_

It was two years, six months and 3 days since he had taken everything from Carla. Since he had stolen the last piece of sanity she had left. The last piece of light that still shone from her body, the one thing she had kept hidden away from everyone only for it to be stolen, snatched away in a cruel, guiltless act of revenge. Michelle knew she still hadn't recovered. She acted like she had, ploughed on through her life as though nothing was wrong. It broke her heart to watch her best friend in so much pain, knowing that there was nothing anyone in the world could do to save her from the demons he had left her with.

She wouldn't speak about it to anybody.

If you asked her about Liam, or even Paul, she'd talk for hours, but even the mention of Frank's name sent her back into her shell. Michelle stood by her, she' been her rock over the last few weeks. She'd watched as Carla had slowly hit her self destruct button, drinking herself into an oblivion, she'd pushed away everyone from around her, she'd let the pieces of life world just fall apart without even putting up a fight.

Michelle knew she'd been slowly sinking back into the old Carla for weeks now, in fact she could pinpoint the exact date. The 5th anniversary of Liam's death. The night they'd spent hours crying into each other's arms, consoling each other like only best friends could.

She wasn't exactly sure what had tipped her over the edge entirely, but she guessed it was the reappearance of an old, not so welcome, ghost from the past.

Frank Foster.

Neither of them could believe it when he arrived at the factory, bold as brass. He hadn't been seen since _that _night but two and a half years later he was back. Obviously he felt Carla hadn't suffered enough at his vicious hands. There was nothing that could be done to stop him. By law, he still owned 40% of the factory and the case of Carla's attack had been dropped almost immediately due to lack of evidence.

Michelle was on her way to Peter's flat, where he, Carla and Simon lived together. She didn't need to knock, having a set of keys Carla had given to her as soon as she'd moved in. She knew she'd find her alone, Peter was downstairs in the bookies and this weekend was Leanne's time with Simon. She hoped maybe she'd be able to get something out of Carla, make her see what she was doing to the people that love her.

What she wasn't expecting when she opened the door, was a guilty looking Carla standing against the counter, the agony obvious in her eyes. Though 'Chelle was sure that it wasn't physical pain. She immediately noticed the blood red stains on Carla's sleeves, her white baggy top proving to be no camouflage for her act.

"Carla what have you done?" Michelle's tone was high, worry echoing through every syllable.

When she got no answer she took a few steps closer to her friend, and grabbed her wrist. With a firm grip, she pulled up her sleeve, tears stinging her eyes instantly. She brought her face up to meet Carla's, whose eyes remained firmly looking down, refusing to meet Michelle's gaze.

She looked down at Carla's arm again, the angry cuts still oozing with blood as they zigzagged along her arm, making delicate patterns with the faded white marks that already adorned her skin, the ones only Michelle knew about.

"Oh Carla darling, why didn't you call me?"

Michelle used the hand that was holding her friends up to pull up Carla's chin, so their eyes now met. They both looked at each other for a few moments, their broken looks mirrored from each other.


	3. Chapter 3

_A/n Thanks so much for the reviews! They mean a lot, and I love the feedback! Sorry this is so depressing but I do have a few plans so please keep reading! Oh and for the sake of this story Frank didn't get murdered._

_"I could **hold** you _for a million years, to make you feel my** love**" -Adele_  
><em>__

Carla looked up at her best friend, their eyes meeting and saying things that words never could. She could see the fear in Michelle's eyes, the worry eating away at her as she tried desperately to fix the things that had caused this broken woman so much pain that it echoed from her voice, bounced off the walls and lingered in the air of the flat

Michelle studied Carla's eyes, trying to prise the information out of her, trying to understand what was going on in that messed up head of hers. She wasn't used to seeing raven haired factory boss so full of self pity, as if all the fight she usually stood strong with had left her body, leaving her a ghost of her former self, a fragement, a broken piece of the intricate puzzle that used to be Carla Connor.

"I don't think I want to live any more 'Chelle"

Her voice was a whisper, less than a whisper, barely audible to the human ear but Michelle heard every word. Every letter, every syllable of those words flooded her entire body, rendering her speechless. She couldn't move, she couldn't breathe, it was though she had felt her heart shatter. "Oh Car" Michelle threw her arms around Carla as tears escaped her warm brown eyes.

She held onto her tightly, as if her life depended on it, she held her like she would never let go. "I wasn't there for you, Oh God Carla I wasn't there"

"You're here now 'Chelle"

They're both crying now, for an on-looker it would be hard to tell which had been the victim and which was the comforter, both women looking as lost as the other, the pain Carla felt, felt also by her best friend. All Michelle wanted was to make it better, to stop her hurting, to fix her.

She longed to pick up the ripped pieces and stick them back together like you might a torn up photo, but she knew, no matter how carefully you replace and repair, the fracture lines will always show.

She couldn't change what had happened, because she had not been there to stop it but she knew now was not a time to feel self pity. All she had was here and now and Michelle needed to do everything in her power to stop herself from losing Carla forever.

With a gentle tug on her hand, Michelle pulled her over to the sofa, and left Carla sitting while she found the things she needed.

She flicked on the kettle, and waited for it to boil while she raided the draws and cupboard. Carla didn't move whilst Michelle did this, her eyes concentrating on the patterns of the carpet. Within a few minutes Michelle was knelt on the floor in front of her, with two coffees, a bowl of sterile water and a bandage.

Michelle tenderly rolled up Carla's sleeve, wincing as she saw the marks Carla had left. She cleaned the wounds softly, using cotton wall and the warm water to keep them from being infected. She wrapped her arm with a bandage, remembering the time she had done this when Carla was only 16 years old. Carla hadn't even flinched as she watched Michelle tend to her, amazed that someone could show her such love.

"Go and get a clean on top on love, I'll still be here when you get back" Michelle said softly, with a ghost of a smile as she pulled herself up from the floor and sat on the sofa beside her sister in law.

Carla wasn't sure she had the energy but she did as she was told, thinking that if Peter came in now he'd know exactly what she had done, and she couldn't bare his pity. She didn't answer Michelle as she stood up, instead she leant down and placed a tender kiss against her cheek and then wondered silently into the bedroom she shared with Peter.

Michelle started to worry after a while when Carla didn't return to the front room, she headed into the bedroom and found her laying on her bed, her raven hair spread across her pillow as she sobbed silently to herself. Michelle walked round to the other side of the bed and lay down beside her, so close their foreheads almost touched.

"Let me in that head of yours Car" She whispered, Carla's eyes staring straight into hers.

"It's all a bit of a mess up here" Came Carla's quiet reply, tapping her head as she spoke, saying the same thing she had said to Maria a few years before.

"Then talk to me. Please?"

"He doesn't stop 'Chelle. He doesn't ever stop. He digs and digs and now it's like there's nothing left"

"Carla, have you.." Michelle struggled with her words, the thought causing an unbearable pain in her chest "Have you thought about.. Doing anything again"

The silence is answer enough but the way Carla ducks her head, her eyes looking down is all the confirmation she needs. "Oh baby" Michelle wraps her arms securely around the older of the two, resting her head against the top of her bed as she lets her tears fall. "Please Carla" She whispers, her voice breaking with emotion "Don't you leave me too"


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N Thanks so much for the reviews, if you have a minute after reading then please leave feedback. Makes me smile! Anna._

_Open up your **heart** to me now, let it all come pouring out, There's** nothing** I can't take- James Morrison_

Carla had been awake for a while now, although she kept herself almost completely still. The soft contact of Michelle's sleeping body against her own provided a shelter from the world she knew she would soon have to face. Her arm felt stiff, sore from her wounds. A battle she had fought against herself with no way of winning.

Michelle's forehead was near to hers, almost touching. They lay so close it was almost impossible to tell where one started and the other ended. With a glance at the clock Carla realised it was almost lunchtime and noted that Peter would be coming home for his break soon. She wasn't sure she could face him today, her mind was a mess and her heart hurt with a dull ache.

She knew she had hurt him. Distancing herself from him when she needed him most. She flinched whenever he touched her and every time she saw pain dance in his eyes. Since Frank had returned she felt unable to trust him. She felt constantly terrified that he may leave her, as though the past two years had meant nothing. She wanted to make it up to him, to explain how frightened she was, to lay in his arms all night but she couldn't' yet. Not today.

Today she needed to be selfish. She needed someone's undivided attention. Someone to hold her for hours on end and love her, protect her without the other distractions of life. What she really needed, was Michelle.

"'Chelle?" Carla nudged Michelle softly, waking her from her light slumber. The pair of them sat up and Carla sighed almost silently, missing the warmth of Michelle's inviting body. "Take me home 'Chelle"

With a tender smile Michelle pulled Carla close to her, understanding all she was saying and all she was asking just from those four words. Michelle knew Carla better than Carla knew herself. She knew that Peter couldn't always provide the comfort she needed whilst he still fought his own demons. She held Carla tightly, resting her chin against her head and rubbing her back in circular motions.

"How's your arm?" Michelle spoke softly, only concern in her voice.

"Sore" Carla admitted, pulling away from Michelle and letting her eyes fall downwards.

"Don't you ever do that again Carla. Hey-"Michelle pulled Carla's face up to look at her with a hand under her chin. "Ever Car. D'you understand me? Smash a glass, throw a plate, and get angry. God you could even punch Frank if ya want but please, please don't hurt yourself darlin'"

Michelle's hand cupped her cheek and Carla's brought her hand up rest on top of it, wrapping her fingers around Michelle's.

"You're my best friend Carla. Let me in"

Carla nodded, admitting defeat. She fell back against Michelle who sighed in relief.

"Come on Sleeping Beauty. Lets go back to yours" Michelle said a while later. She had sat playing with Carla's hair as she lay in her lap. Carla had always been so strong and as much as it killed Michelle to see her so vulnerable, she was glad she was finally accepting her help.

"I wasn't asleep" Carla yawned, sitting up and smiling shyly at her friend. Michelle simply raised her eyebrows in response.

After packing a few of her things whilst Michelle tided the first aid kit away in the kitchen, Carla wondered into the living room of the flat and wrote Peter a note. Leaving it on the kitchen where he would be sure to see it.

_Peter, I've gone back to me flat for tonight, 'Chelle's with me. I just need to get me head sorted. I'm sorry for being so hard on you darlin'. I love you, I'm just not saying it much lately. I'm sorry baby. Call me later?  
>Carla <em>

"Ready?" Michelle asked as she came and stood behind Carla.

"As I'll ever be" Carla smiled and slipped her hand into Michelle's as they made their way outside. She couldn't deny the feeling of being watched, the nerves in the pit of her stomach bubbled away but she smiled back at Michelle who gave her hand a tight squeeze. Carla knew people judged her. Some blamed her and some pitied her. But none of them cared enough to notice her cracks starting to show.

"Can we pop into the factory quick 'Chelle? Got a few things I need to get"

"You sure that's a good idea love?"

"Nope. But when did I ever follow the rules?"

Michelle shook her head at her friend. Carla seemed like a different person than she had been only ten minutes before. Her defences were back, walls built high. Make up and designer clothes hiding her broken self. To the world, she was Mrs Connor, hard –faced home wrecker but to Michelle she was Carla. The best friend she was watching slowly but surely fall apart.

Michelle linked arms with Carla and stayed as close as physically possible as they walked up the stairs to the factory. She still held her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze as they made their way through to the office.

"Carla, Michelle. What a pleasant surprise, I wasn't expecting to see you today" Frank smiled politely in front of his staff, enjoying the way he could still make Carla squirm as he shuffled past her.

Neither of the women spoke to Frank as Carla busied herself finding some paperwork and Michelle stood close behind, playing the part a body guard would, expect with perhaps more of a fierce passion behind her actions. Protecting Carla was her number one priority now, and for as long as was needed.

"So Carla, come for round two have we?" Frank purred, knowing his voice was quiet enough to stop anyone else other than the three of them hearing.

Carla didn't respond but Michelle growled in anger, feeling her emotions starting to get the better of her.

Frank moved to stand behind Carla "Here, let me help" he smirked, reaching over to get the files, his whole body lent over hers causing Carla to heave, close to vomiting as flashbacks of past pains returned.

"Get your hands off her, you piece of scum!" Michelle yanked at Frank's sleeve, pulling him well away from Carla who stumbled her way towards the door, ready for a quick get away.

Michelle lunged at Frank but he was too quick, he gripped her wrists, stopping her fist before it reached his smug face.

Frank often underestimated people, and Michelle was certainly fiercer than she looked, especially when it concerned someone she loved. A slight smile appeared on her face and before Frank had time to realise what was happening she brought her leg up and kneed him hard in his groin. Frank doubled in pain, instantly releasing Michelle. She lent over and whispered in his ear. "That was for Carla you bastard"

With a last laugh at Frank's expense Michelle wrapped her arm tightly around Carla's waist, supporting her as her legs almost gave way. Together they made their way through the factory, showing the world their united front


	5. Chapter 5

A/N_ Thanks so much to everyone on Twitter for the much needed encouragement and ideas! I love you all!*Hugs*  
><em>**_Warnings for mental health issues and detailed self harming scenes. _**

_When **she** was just a **girl **she expected the **world.** But it** flew** away from her **reach** and the **bullets** catch in her **teeth.**  
><em>_**Life** goes on it gets so** heavy.** The wheel **breaks** the** butterfly. **_

Carla ran fast as soon as the air hit her face. She pulled away fiercely from Michelle, almost knocking her over. She stumbled as fast as her legs would carry her away from the factory, from Frank and even from Michelle.

It took her a few minutes to reach a place to stop for breath, once Michelle's voice had stopped echoing after her. She leant against the wall, filling her lungs with the dirty air of the Manchester city. Looking down she realises with annoyance that she has snapped a heel, leaving it clinging to her boot by a thread. A pang of heartache beats through her body as she remembers with regret that they are a pair Paul had brought her so many years ago. Carla fears her last piece of strength has just left her body.

She calls a taxi and continues the journey to her own flat, hoping to get there before Michelle. Knowing that if she can, she can lock the doors, chain the bolts and hide herself away.

Michelle hurries as fast as she can to Carla's flat, her heart pounding with worry. Her head filled with a bitter anger towards Frank that she simply can't deny any longer. He broke her best friend, he tore her apart and now she aches to do the same to him.

It takes a while for a cab to become available for Michelle and she spends the entire journey tapping her nails against her phone, something she always did when she panicked. As soon as the taxi pulled into Carla's apartment Michelle swung open her door, flinging a ten pound note at the driver and letting her self into the large, coded doors.

She take the stairs two at a time, not patient enough to walk. Michelle leans against the door to Carla's flat for a moment, listening for any signs of Carla's presence. With a loud knock she draws Carla's attention, who in fear drops the knife she had been holding against her scarred skin.

The clang of the metal against the cold, hard floor doesn't go un-noticed by Michelle, and she knows. She knows what exactly Carla has been doing, she can almost see it in her head. She sees Carla's red blood dripping against her snow white skin and then she sees her lifeless body, mangled on her kitchen floor.

"Carla, please let me in"

Carla creeps silently over to the door and leans her head against it, the palm of her hand lays flat against the wooden barrier.

"Car?" Michelle whispers as she too leans her head against the door, as though she senses her friend doing the same. Michelle's hand meets the door, unknowingly meeting the same place that Carla's is rested on the other side. Their hands would be touching if the door had not been there, their foreheads would have crashed against each other. It provides a barrier, a literal and metaphorical force that stops the two of them connecting.

"I wish you'd talk to me darlin' I just.. I need to know you're still with me" Michelle feels as though her world is falling apart alongside Carla's. Every time she feels as though they're making progress something seems to bring them tumbling back down. Back to square one, their progress just completely undone, as easy to unravel as a ball of thread.

The sound of the lock clicking open brings Michelle back to reality. She pushes it open a fracture and upon realising Carla is no longer on the other side she gingerly steps inside.

Carla eyes Michelle as she stepped forward towards her, reaching out her arms to embrace her. "Hey you silly, silly girl-"

"Don't touch me Michelle" Carla steps back, clenching her fists in fear.

"Carla, it's me?" Michelle's voice cracks with emotion.

"I know, I know it's you 'Chelle but please, stay away"


	6. Chapter 6

A/N_ I promise there is actually a plot to this story! Please review if you have a minute!x  
><em>**_Warnings for mental health issues and detailed self harming scenes. _**

_**Chasing** you into the **dark. C****hasing** you with all my** heart.**_

Carla turned away from Michelle, yanking down her sleeve as she did. She crouched down, leaning over the blooded knife and reaching over to retrieve it. Her hand hovers just over it as she studies it for a moment, eyeing the colour of it's silver blade as it flashes in the light.

Carla picks up the knife but drops it instantly, as if it hurt to touch. She finds herself choking back a sob, her reaction shocking even herself and tears sting in her eyes.

Michelle reaches out her arm out to Carla, desperate to comfort the broken woman but she is once again met with an angry plea.

"DON'T!" Carla pushes her away, not want to allow herself the comfort her friend longs to give.

Carla uses her sleeve to fiercely wipe her eyes and picks up the knife, taking it over to the sink and watching as it falls from her hand and lands with a bang against the half empty cup in her sink. She doesn't even flinch. She turns on the hot water taps and watches as it runs, waiting until the water is steaming.

She doesn't react as she places her hands in the boiling water, using a cloth to clean the knife. Her hands instantly turns a dark shade of red as the water burns her pale skin.

Michelle's heart crumbles as she watches the scene unfold, watching as Carla carries on as though what she had done was normal, that it was okay. The robotic manner in which she performed the task, with no emotion or feeling turns Michelle's stomach.

The silence in the flat was eerie. Michelle didn't dare speak for fear of upsetting Carla again. She couldn't believe that only hours before she had cradled her in her arms while she slept and now she wasn't allowed to even touch her.

Without saying a word, Carla uses a tea towel to wipe the knife dry, as though she was simply washing up used cutlery, not an object she had used to purposely harm herself only a short while ago.

She storms passed Michelle, ignoring how her hands sting painfully in the cool air. The atmosphere in the flat is tense, filled with the pain of words unsaid.

Michelle follows her and watches as she opens her wardrobe with a loud thud as it hits the wall. Carla seems not to notice as the glass of the mirrored door smashes and crumbles to the floor. She doesn't even bother to step over it as her broken boots crack the class with an echoing crunch. Michelle feel as though she isn't there, like she is watching a movie.

She starts to question her own sanity when she wonders if this is one of those out of body experiences, watching a scene unfold with no ability to change it's ending. She feels as though she is kicking an screaming and yet no sound is made. Carla's undoing had been a long time coming. From the day Carla told her which brother she had really loved all those years ago Michelle had known disaster would strike. So much happened that day. Carla's 16th birthday, and it felt like yesterday. The bandages, the begging and eventually the confession. She hadn't expected it would end here, in a pit of mess and destruction.

"Carla what are you doing?" Carla had started throwing clothes into an old black suitcase she had pulled out the back of her cupboard.

"I'm going"

"Going? Going where? What about Peter?" Michelle almost shouts furious at herself for letting it get so out of hand. Carla was in no state to be left alone let alone left to wonder the streets with no one to turn to. "What about me?" she chocks back a sob, desperate to make her see sense.

Carla doesn't answer and it only makes Michelle more determined to get some answers, to persuade her that this was nonsense and the only place she was going was home.

"Carla, this is ridiculous"

She carried on packing without a word to Michelle. Her breath hitched in her throat as she saw the tears that had been glistening in her friend's eyes finally fall. Still she didn't speak. She couldn't give into her pleas, she couldn't stay around and tear her friends apart. She couldn't ruin them too.

"Are you at least going to tell me where you're going? Or are you just going to let us spend the next god knows how long wondering if you're even alive? Watching the news in case your picture appears? Eh?"

"Don't. Don't you dare Michelle"

Carla pushes past, digging into her draws to find her passport. She shoves some pictures and her phone charger in her case and then zips it up.

"Passport? Carla no way. I'm not letting you go"

"You can't stop me Michelle

"I love you. For fuck sake Carla why do you never let me in?"

"BECAUSE YOU WEREN'T THERE"

She regrets that instantly, her hand is up around her mouth, trying to stop the words she had already said. She thinks she has never hated herself more than she does in that moment. Michelle had spent the last two and a half years living in guilt over Frank, over the fact she wasn't there. And most of all that Carla hadn't even picked up the phone and told her because she didn't trust her enough to let her in.

"I didn't mean that 'Chelle"

"Yes you did"

Michelle turns away from Carla and heads back into the living room, shutting the door behind her. She doesn't leave the flat, she knows Carla needs her. Instead she sinks into the sofa and silently breaks down.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N_ Thanks for the lovely reviews!_

**_Anything _**_is worth doing if I'm doing it fo_**_r you._**

Carla perched herself on the end of her bed, pulling her knees up under her chin and wrapping her arms around herself. She finally allowed herself to cry, letting her tears fall as guilty sobs shook through her body.

Carla spent years building up a life for herself, using her sharp tongue and feisty wit to protect herself from the world she lived in. She'd learnt long ago that life would throw everything it could at you just to watch you fall down on your knees. She can pinpoint the exact moment she had realised this.

_Carla curls herself up into a ball behind the sofa as glasses crash and smash above her. Loud voices shout from just in front of her, some words she doesn't even understand. "She's six years old!" she hears her brother call. But it is her mother's reply that crumples her heart. "And you think I'd care if she drop dead right now?" More voices are added to the mix as she wraps herself up tighter, her thin frame easy to hide behind the old, dirty sofa. She grips her teddy tightly in her arms, it catches her tears as she fights to keep quiet, scared of her drunken mother acknowledging her presence. She spots the broken Barbie doll sprawled in the opposite corner, the hair mangled and a leg missing. It didn't even have clothes and it was the only toy Carla had ever owned, except from the teddy Michelle had given her during their first week of school. It's then she realised the cruelty life held and it was then that she finally accepted that the fairy tale princesses that danced across her best friend's wall were exactly that; a fairy tale._

__Now she had become the person she had spent so many years hating, trying to avoid. She'd become her mother. Her chewed people up then spat them out, leaving them as broken as she was.

She uses her unwounded arm to fiercely wipe the tears from her eyes, smudging mascara across her puffy cheeks and along the sleeves of her top. She yanks the suitcase off of the bed with a bang and with a deep sigh she opens her bedroom door.

Michelle looks up at Carla, her state mirroring Carla's. Her warm eyes brimming over with glistening tears.

"I thought you'd have gone after what I said to you"

"You must have a very low opinion of me Carla" Michelle's voice is stronger than she expected it to be, especially as she pulls herself up from the sofa in such an unsteady manner.

"I don't 'Chelle, what I said I-"

"I wasn't talking about that. I was talking about the fact you thought I'd just let you walk out of my life probably never to be seen again. At least alive anyway"

"Don't do this Michelle"

Carla pulled her suitcase behind her as she picked up her bag and held her passport tightly in her other hands. With a last gentle look at Michelle she walks over to the door. But Michelle is quicker and instantly she is by the door, blocking Carla's exit.

"Michelle move"

"Not a chance"

Carla lets go of the suitcase as she tries to reach past Michelle and open the door. Seizing her chance Michelle grabs the passport from her hand and tears in straight in half.

"You're not stopping me. I am going." Carla punctuates each of the last of the three words with a breath.

"Over my dead body"

She tries to fight past her again and in a rash moment of madness, Michelle grabs the top of Carla's arm. Instantly her eyes glaze over. Her body freezes as she realises that Michelle isn't going to let her go. She feels trapped, suffocated. She's back there in that night, pinned painfully against the door.

"Please let go of me" Carla whispers, her eyes darting from Michelle's eyes to where her hand grips her arm. She immediately does, realising the huge mistake she has made.

Carla can't stop the sobs from shaking through her body as her flash back finally halts and she stares a horrifed Michelle in the eye.

"Carla? I'm so sorry, I-"

Carla takes a deep breath and then gingerly leans her head against her chest. Her whole body almost collapses against her and Michelle holds her weight, once again stopping her from falling. They both slide down again the door, Carla flopping against Michelle's embrace. Carla doesn't cry any longer, she just lies, her eyes open and fearful. It is Michelle that silently sobs, once again feeling a crushing guilt.

Hours later and Carla had long fallen asleep against her friend, mentally chastising herself for letting down her walls but relishing in their closeness.

They still sat in the same position, Carla's legs entwined with Michelle's her head resting against her chest. From the side of them, Carla's phone rang loudly in her bag and Michelle quickly reached over to answer it.

_"Peter? No it's Michelle. Can you come over soon as please? There's something I need to do"_


	8. Chapter 8

_When the** visions** around you, **bring** tears to your eyes and all that **surround** you are secrets and **lies**, I'll be your **strength**_

Peter didn't even stop to put on his coat as he rushed out of the door and into his car. He didn't look either way as he pulled out of the parking space and drove full speed around the corner. The drive seemed to last hours rather than minutes as he replays Michelle's words from their phone call.

_"Carla?"_  
><em><br>"Peter? No it's Michelle. Can you come over soon as please? There's something I need to do"_

_"Where is she, is she with you, is she okay?"_

_"She's here yeah. Look just hurry up all right. This is important"_

Peter had no idea what was so urgent but all he could think of was the last few weeks. The constant arguments and fights. The bitter comments that she had thrown around at him. He bit his lip every time. He watched as she crumpled and broke and he it tore him apart knowing he couldn't fix her. Frank's return had sent her into a downward spiral and now he feared the worst. Feared that maybe she'd done the same thing she had done more than two years ago. Had she surrendered?

Peter swerved the car into the middle of the car park, not bothering where he left it. He slid past the person opening the door to the flat and ran upstairs, faster than he ever had before.

He tapped lightly on the door, heeding Michelle's advice about not disturbing a sleeping Carla.

The door of the flat clicks open and revels Carla slumped across Michelle, who had shuffled over and leant back against the wall. She cradles Carla close to her, rocking gently as her own tears were still yet to subside.

"Michelle, what's happened love?"

"Just help me get her up, please"

Peter leans down beside Carla and softly moves a stray piece of hair from her face. Placing one arm under her legs and the other under her arm he picks her up, now holding her like a baby. Michelle watched as Carla's eyelids flutter slightly and she moulds herself against Peter's body while she sleeps. He sits down on her sofa and lays Carla on top of him, her head resting flat against his chest while he fiddles with her hair, relieved that she seems placid at least for the moment.

It's then that he notices that way her sleeve has caught and pulled it's self up, leaving the angry red marks on her arm for all to see. He looks to Michelle as his breath hitches in his throat.

"Don't ask" And he doesn't. He understands. Instead he tenderly pulls down the sleeve, knowing how upset Carla would be if she thought he knew her secret before she had opened it up to him herself.

"I need to go out, I won't be long. Whatever you do, don't leave her alone. Not even for a second" Before Peter has a chance to answer Michelle is gone, heading out into the evening.

She's surprised by how dark it has got already and yet she knows this works in her favour. She skulks along the street, constantly watching out for anyone that may be a witness.

It doesn't take Michelle long to get to the factory and she creaks the door open as silently as she can. She is glad she wore soft shoes as they make barely a sound on the factory floor. She creeps towards the office, seeing Frank sitting, concentrating intently.

His body is hunched over the desk. _Carla's desk. _And he hurriedly scribbles words down onto some paperwork. _Carla's paperwork. _He doesn't look up as he reaches out to take a swig of the drink from the glass next to him. _Carla's glass._

Michelle is filled with a fury, a passionate rage that fills every ounce of her body._ Carla's factory. Carla's contracts. Carla's chair. Carla's flat. Carla's freedom. Carla's sanity. Carla's body. Carla. Carla. Carla._

Michelle is exhilarated as she stands behind Frank, still unnoticed. As she lifts up the paperweight high above her head she stops for a second, all air leaving her body. She sees them both in front of her. Memories flashing in her mind as she does. She sees them alive, smiling, happy. She seems them dead, murdered or stolen from her. She sees them kissing and loving Carla. They stand in front of her, she sees them clear as day. Almost see-through and yet their anger makes them nearly whole again.

She thought that maybe they were warning her. Liam and Paul. Her Liam and Paul. Except they never were hers, they were theirs. They belonged to Carla as much as they did to Michelle. Except they are smiling. They are proud, they are encouraging and eager.

She feels as though this is her duty. Their job was always to protect their Carla and so now she takes on this priority. They live on through her and the thought alone is enough to heal a fraction of her worn heart.

Her hands reach higher above her head and she brings the object down with a fierce blow, yelping as it comes in contact with his head. Her eyes squint shut right before a loud crack and the only face that dances across her eyes is Carla.


	9. Chapter 9

Michelle silently walked back from the factory, her breathing heavy and eyes fierce. She eventually finds her way back to Carla's flat and leans against the wall as the rain starts to pour down, washing away her sins. She reaches into her bag and pulls out the paperweight, covered in Frank's blood. As she looks up at the sky, rain almost blinding her vision she holds it out in her hands, allowing the water to rinse away the blood and anything else of Frank's deceased body that remained on the glass murder weapon.

She is startled by her phone ringing from inside her bag, the 16th time Carla's name had flashed up since she had left over two hours previously.

Finding her keys to the flat she lets herself in and slowly begins to climb the steps, weapon still in hand.

She can hear Carla pacing back and forth, and Peter trying to sooth her with his calming voice. All the words seem to echo in her head, swirling round and getting lost before she is able to un-jumble them and make sense of what is being said.

"Why won't she answer her damned phone?"

"Carla love, try and calm down. She's probably just getting some air"

"You don't understand Peter, I was so awful to her today, what if she doesn't come back?"

Michelle allows herself to lean back against the wall, taking deep, hungry breaths to calm herself down before stepped inside. Carla and Peter both turned to look at the door as it clicked open, revealing a sodden Michelle and Carla instantly allowed herself to release a breath she didn't know she had been holding. "Where the hell have you been 'Chelle?"

Before she answers she walks over to Carla's cupboard, retrieving a bottle of brandy and a tumblr. She pours herself a large glass and drinks it in once gulp. She then pours out more and does the same again, repeating the process before slamming the glass down on the side.

"I went for a walk"

Peter eyes her suspiciously, he knew she had been reluctant to leave Carla and didn't really believe she would have done just for a walk. He noted the way her hands shock violently but couldn't decide whether that was due to the cold or something more sinister.

The silence in the flat is eerie. Neither of them questions the way Michelle's body shakes against her will, or the way she grips a paperweight to her body, holding it close to her chest.

Carla takes her by the hand and leads her through to the bedroom, leaving Peter to ponder his thoughts.

"Chelle darlin' you're soaked through"

Rummaging through her clothes, Carla found her brown tracksuit and an old white t-shirt. "Michelle, change into this love, you'll catch a cold in those wet things"

Michelle looked up and caught Carla's gaze. She shook her head as a sob escaped her mouth, whispering to herself again and again repeating the words over and over. As if all sanity had been wiped from within her. "No, no, no. Please, no"

The scene mirrored itself from only hours before, except this time it is Carla that pulls Michelle close, holding her tightly and rocking her to and fro. She whispers soothing words to cover Michelle's broken sobs.

"Chelle, you really need to talk to me. I know I'm a cow. I know you think I'm some heartless monster darlin but I do love you. Your me best friend, and I dont' show it always but I do care. Whatever's happened, you can tell me. Tell me, please?"

Michelle pulls away from Carla's comforting embrace and turns so she can look her in her eye, a soft, emotional sigh leaving her lips as she does.

"I saw our Liam"

"Liam?"

Michelle nods, ignoring the disbelieving look on Carla's face. "Liam and Paul. They were both there, I saw them.

"Darlin' they're dead. Paul n Liam, they're both dead"

"I know that Carla, I'm not stupid!" She takes another deep breath, closes her eyes and thinks back to what she had seen only hours before.

"They were at the factory, I-"

"Hang on a minute, the factory? You went to the factory?"

"Yes, I had to Carla. I needed to see him"

Carla's mind begins to wonder, she thinks back to the night in the factory when she herself had confronted Frank. Two years before, not long before he fled, he had pinned her to the rails. He threatened to take the very last out ounce of dignity and life she had. She can't stop her mind from flashing images of Frank attacking Michelle, pinning down her wrists, hiking up her skirt. She sees him throw her across the floor, climbing onto her tiny body. She can hear Michelle's helpless screams, and Carla can't reach her, she can't stop it.

"'Chelle, did.. Did he hurt you baby"

Michelle shakes her head violently, but it doesn't convince Carla. She cannot rid herself of her rapist violating the person she cares most about in all the world. She knows the pain and destruction it causes a person and thinks that she would have taken Michelle's place a million times over.

"I saw them Carla, they stood there, they watched. I thought they'd be angry, disappointed but they didn't, they smiled Carla"

"Michelle, I don't understand, they watched what? What did he do?"

"Not Frank, Carla. Not Frank, me. It was me. I killed him"


	10. Chapter 10

Carla laughed, she couldn't stop herself. A sarcastic, almost bitter laugh. A thousand thoughts whirled around her mind. If Frank was dead, it made Michelle a murderer, and Carla was the only person to blame. And yet if Frank wasn't dead, it made her an attempted murderer, and left her in just as dangerous a place. If he lived, he'd almost definitely tell the police, and Michelle's life would be a living hell. She'd never survive more than a day in prison, she'd crumble and break.

She was far too precious for such a dirty place. She had potential, she had heart and life. She had a beautiful grin and a knack for making Carla laugh when she didn't even want to smile.

"Michelle are you sure he's-"

"He's dead Carla, no doubt about it"

Michelle stands up, keeping her eyes away from Carla's gaze. She wonders slowly into the en suite, and runs the cold tap, letting the water wash over her hands. Michelle leans her weight against the sink, splashing water over her face, hoping it will wash away more than just her exhaustion.

As she closes off the tap, Michelle twists her body so her back leans against the edge of the sink. For a few brief moments she lets herself process the events of today. She thinks back to how she stood silently behind Frank. She can hear the way his head cracks and his body slumps against the desk as the force of the murder weapon bangs against him.

Something eats away from inside her but Michelle can't decide whether it is guilt or not. She doesn't think it is, because she knows she would do it all again if it meant Carla would be safe. She thinks to herself maybe it is guilt for not feeling guilty and to her this makes sense. She doesn't feel the guilt that one should for taking someone's life. She isn't even sure if she regrets it.

Carla startles Michelle from her thoughts as she enters the bathroom with tears brimming in her eyes.

"This is all my fault 'Chelle" She whispers, still not letting her tears fall.

Michelle doesn't answer but she steps forward slightly and takes Carla's hand in hers. It says more than words ever could because it shows they stand united. Their fingers intertwined show the world that they are a force to be reckoned with. You cannot hurt one and expect the other to simply watch as they fall apart.

"What's going to happen to me Car?" Michelle still grips Carla's hand tightly as they stand in front of each other.

"Nothing, you're going to be fine Michelle"

"Carla I killed a man, how can you even think it'll be fine?"

"Because you're my best friend and there is no way I'm letting you go to prison. Frank's not going to have that hold over us"

Carla uses her hand to wipe the tears that linger across Michelle's cheek and offers her a little smile. As she watches the woman in front of her, she cannot allow herself to think of the crime she had committed. Carla had grown up with Michelle, they had been best friends since the first day of primary school when Michelle had strutted up to Carla, flicked her hair behind her ear and began to ramble on about things Carla could still to this day remember

"_This place is so stupid isn't it? I don't see why we have to go to school but my mum says we have to. My big brothers Paul and Liam come here too so mummy says it's only fair that I do. I told her that they're boys, and they're stupid so they have to go to school but she won't listen. I don't like it here. All the children look really boring, 'cept you though. You look nice. What's your name? I'm Michelle by the way, but you can call me 'Chelle" _

They'd stuck together ever since, the odd ones out but they didn't care. They had each other and everyone else seemed somewhat irrelevant.

"So what happens now?"

Carla brings her hands up to cup both Michelle's face, using the pad of thumb to softly stroke her cheek.

"What happens now, is you go and pack a bag. There's a few things I have to do, sort out flights and things so just hang tight and don't go anywhere do you understand?"

"What? Car-"

"Don't ask questions 'Chelle just do as you're told, I'll be back as soon as I can okay?" She places a gentle kiss to her cheek and gives her hand a last squeeze before turning to leave the flat.

"Oh and Michelle? While I'm gone, stick me passport back together would you love?


	11. Chapter 11

'_Oh thinking about our __**younger **__years, there was __**only**__ you and me. We were young and wild and __**free'**_

"Peter we need to go" Carla spoke quickly, striding effortlessly into the front room of her flat, two large but half filled suitcases in tow. As she wonders around the room swiftly, she finds more and more things she doesn't wish to lose. She throws in old photos and rushes to her cutlery draw; retrieving an old blue lighter she had taken from Liam on the night they had shared their first cigarette. The same one she had profusely denied any knowledge of its presence anytime it was mentioned.

Peter looked at her with wide, confused eyes as she flung her possessions carelessly into her bags. He worried that she and Michelle have argued yet that gives no answers as to why Carla is packing everything she owns.

"Carla what-"

He is interrupted by Carla's own voice as her hand snaps up to her mouth.

"Shit!" She hurries back into her bedroom and lies delicately on her tummy. She positions herself under her bed and stretches as far as she can. With a small groan her fingers retrieve the large white box, still wrapped in a burgundy ribbon. Carla ignores Michelle's confused glances as she then pulls out a few of Liam and Paul's clothes and takes the two large shoe boxes from her shelves.

"They were my everything 'Chelle. I can't just leave their memories to sit here and rot"

"What's going on Carla?" Peter asks as she enters the room again. "What the hell are you doing with that? He signals to the large white box "Isn't that ya wedding dress, yours 'n Tony's one?

Carla looks up at him. Her eyes glaze over for a moment, remembering times that seem so long ago; she lets her eyes fall to the floor as her heart flutters with a dull ache

"**What do you want?"  
>"You"<strong>_**  
>"Don't look at me like that"<br>"Do you ever stop giving orders?  
>"I'm trying to be strong for us both...Why are you doing this?"<br>"'Cause I'm sick and tired of trying not to"  
><strong>_**"Help me take this off?"**

Her hand wipes the tears from her eyes, and again her gaze meets Peter's. "This was never Tony's dress Peter" She whispers "This were Liam's"

As Michelle steps back into Carla's living room a small while later, she finds it empty. She feels like she could collapse in a heap and cry herself to sleep but she manages to hold herself together. Michelle quickly makes her way into her bedroom and repeats the process she had watched Carla do only a while before.

She throws in her clothes, her shoes and jewellery. She empties boxes and shelves, not wanting to leave anything behind when she knows she'll likely never return.

Her hand eventually comes in contact with some old photo albums filled with a thousand of her own memories. She flinches as she holds them in her hands and notes that she hasn't looked inside since the day of Liam's funeral, having slipped a few pieces of paper inside and closing it up.

She hadn't been able to bring herself to look inside since but now she feel compelled.

With her legs crossed she perches on her bed and opens the first of the books. The beginning pages are filled with things she can't remember, baby photos and memories that belong to her parents. It is the next few pages that bring a fond smile to her soft features.

Her first school photo, taken a week after she had started. She remembers it like it was yesterday. Her, Liam and Paul were called up from the long line for their family photo, something their parents had insisted on and had paid extra for. Michelle had been as stubborn then as she is now and refused to take part unless Carla could to. They'd not left each other's side since their first day, even Paul and Liam took interest in the raven haired little girl. She had been so surprised when they had agreed with her and the teachers had relented after some persuasion.

Helen had been furious when the pictures arrived and ripped them right in two. Her hatred for Carla already strong and passionate as she looked down her nose at the little girl from the rough estate.

You can still see now where the rip had been, and the way Michelle had carefully taped it back together. The tear was straight between Liam and Carla, breaking their embrace.

As she looks back now, Michelle thinks maybe the rip had been a warning of such. Carla and Liam and always been separated in one way or another, doomed from the start. And no matter how hard you try to fit the pieces perfectly back together the crack will always show.

Michelle reminisces through the photos and notices the way that Carla is in every one of them. Her presence had been there since day one and Michelle couldn't remember a time without her. A photo that makes her smile most is one of her son at only a few hours old. Carla cradles him in her arms, her lips resting on his forehead after giving him a lingering kiss.

A sad smile adorns Michelle's face as she opens the next album, knowing this one holds the tragedies that had occurred later in her life. There are hundreds of photos of their older selves. At parties, on days out, long walks, family photo shoots. Christmases, birthdays and every other occasion you could envisage. Michelle had always been clicking away, taking photos as often as possible. She tells the others when they mock her that she knows how important it is to saviour your memories. How right she had been.

She closed the album but something slips out and lands in her lap. It catches the light as Michelle picks it up and lets the chain slide between her fingers. She hasn't worn it in years and yet it feels so familiar. She knows that it is because Carla wears hers almost daily. The small gold heart that is attached to the chain makes her fingers tingle. The rough engravings on the back make her heart beat slightly faster as she remembers what the letters stood for.


	12. Chapter 12

_If I could, baby I'd give you my world. Open up, everything's waiting for you._

"Will you hurry up? We're gonna miss the flight!"

"Carla, I'm not coming with you until you tell me what the hell is going on!"

"Fine Michelle, you stay here and wait for the police to find Frank's dead, rotting body. See how that works out for ya! We haven't got time to talk so get your arse in this car, NOW"

Michelle looked at Carla, the fire in her eyes filling her with a hope that maybe things would be okay again. So she does as she's told. She tries to ignore the longing way in which Carla's eyes linger over the bookies. She tries to ignore the way that Peter leans against the window of his flat, his eyes clearly filled with tears for what he is about to loose.

Her own, tired eyes linger across the the factory, brimming with tears that glimmer dangerously under the night's moon. Michelle looks at her hands, imagining them covered in Frank's poisoned blood, something she knows she's stained with until long after her own death.

She shivers outwardly as Carla edges the car slowly away from the cobbles, clearly reminiscing just as she is doing herself.

_"We stood together. We shared the same tears Carla, we shared the same tears. And then you spit on his grave!"_

**_"Oh you really are scum"_**

_"What's he done Carla? What's he done?"_

**_"We make a good team me and you"_**

_"What, more complicated than when our Paul died? Or the so called 'love of ya life' being murdered?_

**_"Well with our choice of men, we could do worse. Love you"_**  
><strong><em>"Love you"<em>**

_"All I ever wanted to be were part of the gang. You wouldn't let me in, I weren't good enough"_

**_"No, don't smile. Just don't bite anyone"_**

_"Believe it or not Carla, I do actually give a damn about you"_

Michelle allowed her eyes to flicker across to Carla once they had sped away from the street, both knowing they'd never return to the place that had been the home of so much heartache but so much love.

"Where are you going? This isn't the way to the airport" Michelle waited for Carla's response as she swerved the car to a halt and pulled on the handbrake with a fierce shove.

"I think we've got some old friends to say bye to first, don't you?" Michelle could sense the anger in Carla's voice, but it was underlined with a sense of overwhelming fear, and heart-wrenching loss. They stood side by side for a while, Carla briefly watching the younger woman from the corner of her eye. She wanted to be angry, she wanted to shout and scream at her for taking her away from the first man she'd truly loved since Liam.

But she found she couldn't. Because at the thought of Frank's lifeless body, her heart soared inhumanely. She was free, and Michelle had taken it upon herself to save her from a life of despair. She may have lost everything she knew to be home, but she was side by side with her best friend, and together they'd make it okay.

So instead of getting angry, she pulls Michelle close to her, cradling her as they stand together. Michelle grips Carla's coat, tears simmering down her rosy cheeks, fear and guilt convulsing through her body. Her knuckles turn a shade of white as she hangs onto Carla tightly, afraid of loosing her too.

"Hey" Carla pulls away from Michelle, cupping her cheeks and rubbing them softly with the pads of her thumbs "Hey, come on now. It's all gonna be okay baby"

"Do you promise Car?"

"Cross my heart" She draws a heart across her chest with her pinky finger and holds it out for Michelle to grip as they share a smile over a childhood memory. "Come on kid, lets go say goodbye to those brothers of yours"


	13. Chapter 13

_This is to cheer up my little Laurapie :-) _

Michelle shuffled in her bed, stirring from her sleep. As soon as her eyes opened she remembered where she was and all memories of the previous two days came flooding back. She sat bolt up in bed, looking towards the window of the hotel she slept in. Paranoia had kicked in and she had convinced herself that the Police were going to find her and take her away from everything she knew.

A warm clammy hand entwined against hers and she felt familiar sense of relief wave through her body. Carla moved across the bed so she sat in front of Michelle, a small smile on her lips. She let her fingers graze over Michelle's cheek, trying to calm her down from her obvious worried state and her heart fluttered against her will.

"They won't find us Darlin' I promise" Carla calmed Michelle's fears without even asking what they were. She already knew and the wild fear in her best friend's eyes broke her heart.

Michelle rested her cheek against Carla's shoulder who immediately pulled her close, wrapping her arms around her waist tightly. Carla lay back, bringing Michelle with her so they lay together on the bed, still holding each other.

The flight to Ireland had tired them, both equally scared they would get caught but neither admitting it. Truth was, Carla was terrified. If she ever lost Michelle she knew she wouldn't cope. But she held it together because she knew if she didn't they would both fall apart.

They'd booked into a hotel in the middle of nowhere. The only reason Carla even knew of it's existence was because Paul had brought her here when they just got together. She hoped they'd be okay because if they didn't have each other, they didn't have anything.

Eventually they fell asleep, exhaustion taking over the tired pair. Their limbs were still tangled together, Michelle's head rested on Carla's chest and her leg was wrapped over hers.

..

The sound of Carla's phone buzzing against the table woke Michelle a while later and she pulled away from a sleeping Carla whilst not letting go of her hand, relishing in her comfort and warmth.

Peter's name flashed up and a text message appeared. Instantly Michelle grew jealous at the thought of Peter and Carla and she couldn't understand why. Why was she feeling jealous of her best friend's lover, and what did it mean?

Curiosity got the better of Michelle as she opened the text message, trying not to wake her sleeping friend.

_Miss you baby, stay safe please. Love you_

Michelle watched Carla as she slept, she looked almost content as her dreams filled her mind, taking away her reality for just a little while. With a quiet sigh she deleted Peter's text and lay down, resting her head on Carla's chest. Something niggled away as she heard Carla's mumble in her sleep, and she thought maybe she knew what it was.


End file.
